Naked came the theatergoer

Deciding how to dress to go to the theater is a big deal for some people. Maybe it'd be easier simply not to get dressed at all?

That seems to be the thinking behind a couple of recent productions, anyway. While some theater blogs are full of complaints that people dress too casually when they attend plays, at least two productions have made deciding how to dress easier by urging audiences to come naked.

The first was a production of "Hair" by a London theater company named Vaults. The musical includes a "be-in" scene in which all or some of the cast ends up naked (in most "Hair" productions, the actors are given an option about whether to bare all). One performance last month was billed as "clothing-optional," which meant the nudity extended to at least part of the audience -- whose members were invited to join the nakedness, provided they brought a bag for their clothes and a towel to sit on.

Same deal at a performance of "Afterglow" in New York this weekend. The gay-themed play, which features substantial on-stage nudity, has a clothing-optional performance Sunday. According to New York Daily News, tickets to that particular performance were bought out by a nudist group -- and this isn't the first time that's been done. There are a number of clothing-optional groups in the Twin Cities, but no word yet on whether any of them have considered similar events.